Actual 'Breaking News' headline story or advertising dollars at work?

USAToday is one of my homepages. At this point, I don't have time for in depth reading of the news and I like the UI of the site. It's easy to see things I have an interest in and the articles are very straight forward without too much bias and opinion.

I found this rather humorous and quite disturbing today. I've attached the image of the site today. I couldn't believe the story they chose to headline on their site was for the release of Apple's new watch as "Breaking News". Um, seriously?? That's what you find the most important thing going on in the world right now...that you put it up in big bold red? :-Drolleyes

Then I thought....hmmm...sites have sponsers and advertisers. I wonder if Apple advertises through them and if so, would that get you a big red banner headline on a news site?

Maybe it's me that needs the tinfoil hat. LOL

 

Jeez...I actually didn't even look at the article.

If I were going to spend that much money on a watch, it would certainly not be one that was made by Apple. They'll get people though.

 

I will admit to just a wee bit of prejudice. LOL

In this case though, a tech watch being released regardless of maker is definitely not breaking news...and a watch by said tech company is for sure not worth 10K.

 

Give me 10K and I won't be purchasing a watch!!!

 

Yeah sadly we don't have war, death, pestilence, homeless, sick and whatever nuts as hell thing Kanye is doing this week going on that a watch is front page news.

Sad thing is that with 24/7 365 news, they have to write about ever last nugget floating around, and yes it will bring in the ad dollars. The watch maybe ok, but read the crucial tech specs, in that the basic is $349 but you can double that in reality as you need at least an iPhone 5 to sync to it, so anything of the core aspects of apps, email that need internet, you need an iPhone, otherwise its a glorified iPod nano and watch.

If it had come with 4G built in then it opens up a new thing for me, but currently my phone tells time and all the other things fine, but you know Apples marketing dept. are awsome and the iSheep will follow, with the Watch to go with their ever growing collection of iPhones, iPads, iPods etc (some have every version)

BUT the main future issue I see is in Apples OS updates, they ditch app support for new ones after 5yrs in general (I have a 2nd gen iPod Touch that cannot update many apps now so useless more all bar Music and Weather) so a watch with a 5yr lifespan is not great. Doesnt look good either as I had or have still a Timex that looked like that from the 1980s!!

 

Ah have to explain that one further as it was same shape similar design look but not a smartwatch, good old hands and fingers and the odd toe.

 

Again...I have to admit to not clicking on the article yesterday, but agree with all the above statements.

My main shock was the status of the article being USAToday's 'Breaking News'. LOL I think we've lost touch with what breaking news is.

There will be plenty of people buying this watch, I'm sure. To each their own. I wouldn't buy the Android one either. I have zero interest in wearing my tech around.

A watch for me is a nice accessory and a piece of jewelry and I want it to look like jewelry and match my outfits. Hey...I have my standards. They may not be lofty or unshallow, but there they are. :-D

 

Indeed the early adopters will be queuing from 5 days before shop launch in little tents. That's great if you want to go that way but I agree with you Laura, is this going to change our lives, NO as smart watches have been around for a few years and I'll wait a few years more for the bugs to be ironed out.

I'm with you and just bought a new non-techy techy watch the other week, at least it doesn't need charging every day... that battery life on the Apple is a deal breaker, needs to be near 7 days at min.

 

A bargain! :-D

I have to say, they are cuter than what I thought they'd be. The issue I'd have with it is the depth...the watch part sticks up an awful lot.

 

Majority of the Gold ones will end up in the Gulf states.

The battery specs are hilarious reading https://www.apple.com/watch/battery.html you can get 48hrs out of one, if you only check the time 5 times in an hour for 4secs!

Now if Apples battery in this is like the iPhones one then wear rates will have that down in 6-12mths to 1 time an hour. Don't think many in press have thought of practical aspects of this over the shiny, while yes it seems Apple can change the battery for you, but at what cost.

Looking at size of it and the small icons on the touchscreen, if you have largeass fingers then its going to be a nightmare, then while it has Siri, do you really want to look like a knob talking into your phone (I know some will as its a la Star Trek-ish).

Smartwatches I like the concept of but they need to be different. Love to see how this fairs in the next 12 months.

 

I think the idea of breaking news has gotten lost as Breaking News and from chatting to a few friends that are journos is that its something brand new like a surprise event or heaven forbid a disaster. Not a pre-planned event that we have all known about for ages and even really seen what the watch looked like before the event.

Yes every story is news worthy, this one IMHO is news worthy but in a side bar, but as a OMG shock horror Apple releases a watch type in an election winning hoohaa is a little over the top, yes the press will do the same for Windows 10, but its not breaking news, maybe if on install it shuts the world down, like pictures of Kim Kardashian's butt, this stopping the internet with a pic craze (never happen, see Lindsey Lohan tried it last week) is a whole new topic.

I think news is likely a personal thing in which we all have degrees of whats core news that will affect us.

 

It's a sad day when people consider any release of a retail product Breaking News.

And no. I do not consider the release of Windows Breaking News. Is it news? Sure. It deserves a place somewhere in there as do the Apple watches. Should either of them have a read banner as if they are incredibly important. No way.

And to my point of my original post...this is about the huge red banner...not that the watch was in the news.

If I wanted to bother taking the time to do it, I'm sure I could go back a couple of days and find many world/national events that actually were Breaking News.

Agreed. The release of a watch is up there with all the stuff that David mentioned.

 

Maybe on the Barbie News Network.

 

lol...I know, right? With all the crap going on in this world....